Nurses, frontline workers and ambulance staff who helped to protect the nation during the time of the Covid-19 pandemic got their residency visas automatically upgraded to the golden visa.
The workers were delighted and surprised to find that the shift was made automatically.
Healthcare staff who took special care of critically-ill Covid-19 patients in the UAE hospitals stated they were surprised to find two-year validity Emirates ID cards updated to a further ten years after checking their status on the Federal Authorities for Identity and Citizenship app.
This is per the government’s announcement in 2021 that frontline staff and their families would be provided with golden visas for their remarkable efforts to safeguard the country.
The exact process is expected to be rolled out for staff in hospitals around the nation as part of initiatives of the government to recognise the work of medics and provide stability to frontline workers and their families.
A nurse with the NMC Royal Hospital in Dubai, Silpa Suresh and her husband, Jephy Antony, head emergency room nurse, got golden visas on Thursday, June 7.
Ms Suresh’s work visa was up to next year, but it was extended to 2032 by the government.
Authorities stated earlier this year that the ID of Emirates which is the country’s identification card system, would have details of residents’ visa status.
Government departments were told that they could verify individuals’ residency via the Emirates ID card and would no longer get residency visa stickers on their passports.
A spokesperson for the NCM confirmed that the nurses, ambulance drivers as well as IT staff in the department of health and safety had got their golden visas recently without applying for them.
In the NCM Royal Hospital, where Ms Suresh works, the number of staff who got golden visas is around 110 and includes pharmacists, nurses, laboratory technicians and radiographers.